Synopsis: The view that COVID-19 (Sars-CoV-2) has a potential laboratory origin is being attributed to President Trump. But plenty of scientists are raising this issue too. What are the chances, after all, that the epicentre of the COVID-19 outbreak should occur within literal walking distance of the leading research and collection centrein the world for SARS-like bat coronaviruses? Much additional data points in the direction of a lab escape of the kind that some researchers have long warned of. On the other hand, new information has made the zoonotic origin thesis less likely. This article explains the specific lab accident scenarios and describes how the kind of research conducted at the WIV makes a lab accident a strong possibility.

Synopsis: Are risks from emerging technologies the highest existential threats we face? Suddenly, the question is getting more attention. It is overdue. By mixing and matching pathogens in labs with poor biosecurity records, says Matthews, we are playing Russian roulette.